AVS 59th Annual International Symposium and Exhibition
    Plasma Science and Technology Thursday Sessions
       Session PS-ThA

Paper PS-ThA4
Plasma Generation and Delivery from a VHF Remote Source

Thursday, November 1, 2012, 3:00 pm, Room 25

Session: Plasma Sources
Presenter: D. Carter, Advanced Energy Industries Inc.
Authors: D. Carter, Advanced Energy Industries Inc.
D. Hoffman, Advanced Energy Industries Inc.
K. Peterson, Advanced Energy Industries Inc.
R. Grilley, Advanced Energy Industries Inc.
Correspondent: Click to Email
A new remote plasma source (RPS) driven by capacitively coupled VHF power has been defined for use in chamber cleaning or other processes where ex-situ plasma generation is desired. The combination of VHF drive, compact size and unique geometry results in a plasma source capable of very high plasma densities and a resulting field structure offering some interesting characteristics. The device is shown to allow operation in a conventional “remote” mode where the plasma is largely confined within the primary volume of the source or alternatively in a “projecting” mode where the plasma extends well beyond the output of the device reaching to and even filling a downstream chamber with active plasma. This study evaluates behaviors of the VHF RPS in both remote and projected modes as well as in a hybrid mix of both modes. We report on operating characteristics and plasma parameters including density, potential and electron temperatures at the source and downstream and additionally look at ion energy distributions at various points in the system. Results are compared with alternative remote source technologies to illustrate the differences and potential advantages offered by this new RPS topology.